I have celebrated Chinese New Year my entire life. And being a Malay Muslim and living in Malaysia, I feel myself very unique and special for doing so.

It is not hard to understand why. I have Chinese and Malay blood in me. My grandmother on my mother’s side is Chinese and the ethnic influence is very strong.

My brothers and I all speak Cantonese (however poor our pronunciation is) and when we speak English, we are very easily mistaken for being Chinese because of our accent.

When I was in primary school, some Malay classmates would tease me and say that I am committing a sin by celebrating Chinese New Year and collecting ang pows.
At first I was confused, but very quickly I realised that they were all just stupid and did not know what they were talking about. I was proud of that.

Of course, our family celebrated Hari Raya too and so did all our Chinese relatives who would gather at our house every single year without even needing an invitation.

And as how life naturally is, my Chinese grandmother eventually died and this year is the second Chinese New Year without her being with us.

So now, during Chinese New Year’s eve, we joke that we are really just a bunch of Malays flipping salmon in plum sauce with chopsticks and gulping down “chai choy” without any real reason to do so!

So a petition was raised on the US White House website calling for President Barack Obama’s attention to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s rejected appeal on his sodomy conviction and his five-year jail sentence.

Then there was another petition raised on the same website calling for the US government to respect the sovereignty of Malaysia and its people and not interfere in internal affairs.

And as expected, there are supporters of both petitions. As for me, I think I’m a little torn between the two because both petitions have their merits or justifications.

If a gross injustice happens, calling for international attention and condemnation is one way to pressure those in charge to actually do something to address it.

That is the reason the international press wields so much influence. They highlight issues of concern so that people will pay attention and take appropriate action.

But I also believe that what has happened in our country is something that needs to be addressed by our own people without the interference of others. We can keep our own house in order.

So it is funny to see how the US government has been trying to handle the situation with our little country Malaysia as delicately as they can.

The recent police report made by a chairman of an NGO against online columnist Mariam Mokhtar for an opinion piece she wrote is a worrying precedence.

As is the case in Malaysia, every single expression that could slightly offend someone can be made into a police report in order to intimidate the person making that expression.

For someone to have to resort to making a police report over a piece of writing, it just goes to show that he does not have the ability to engage with the writer in the most appropriate way.

Personally, I have read many things that I find offensive written by many people (such as Ridhuan Tee and the likes) in many publications, online and in print.
But I do not make police reports against these writers because I believe that they have a right to express whatever their thoughts and opinions are, no matter how absurd.

But what I would do, and have done many times, is to engage writers by writing my own thoughts and opinions to counter what I disagree with.

In fact, there have been times where another writer and I had a go for several weeks criticising and having a blow with each other in our weekly columns. No reports were made.

And that is exactly how it should be because that is what a rational discourse is supposed to be like, with the public chipping in and making up their own minds as well.

No good ever comes from shutting people up through force rather than logic and reasoning. And that is why I will continue to advocate for no censorship.

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The Fat Bidin Podcast

The Fat Bidin Podcast (Eps 36) - Human rights in Malaysia

Amnesty International recently released its report on the state of the world's human rights and its Malaysian chapter says our country's status is deteriorating. Zan and Aizyl discuss freedom of expression, religious discrimination and Amnesty International's forecast on further infringements we may face in the coming couple of years.

My latest book (a non-fiction graphic novel) is now on sale! Help me feed my daughter by buying it today!

ADVENTURES OF A KL-ITE IN AFGHANISTAN
(Story by Zan Azlee, illustrations by Arif Rafhan Othman; 2014)

‘Adventures of a KL-ite in Afghanistan’ is one of the many retellings of Zan Azlee’s travels in Afghanistan. He is a multimedia journalist who has been to many conflict zones including Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Turkey and Southern Thailand. Nevertheless, he still cowers like a coward when he hears gunfire!

Zan was keen to find out more about the war-torn country, and what it might be like to be there. Armed with only his camera gear and an open mind, he travels to Afghanistan with no idea what he is getting himself to. He ends up meeting many interesting figures, visits several ‘tourist spots’, and even gets embedded with the Malaysian army in Afghanistan.

*The book can be found at any major bookstore or can be purchased online at the Fat Bidin e-Store below.

Own original Fat Bidin films (DVDs), books and merchandise!

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Guide to Afghanistan: The Adventures of a KL-ite
Part 3 of 10
'Ahmad Shah Massoud the Martyr'
And they celebrate a hero like they're going to war!

Full Synopsis:
Zan Azlee, a Malaysian KL-ite journalist who has lived all his life in non-conflict zones, travels to Afghanistan to see if he can come up with the best travel guide for the country. With no idea what he is getting himself into, he dodges suicide bombers and IEDs, and even gets embedded with the army, to plan out the best tourist route in Afghanistan.

About

My name is Zan Azlee. I’m a MULTIMEDIA JOURNALIST, DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER, WRITER and a NEW MEDIA CONTENT CONSULTANT. I'm a mass-comm LECTURER at several local universites. I run FAT BIDIN MEDIA. I'm currenly also EDITOR for MAGAZINE PROGRAMMING at ASTRO AWANI.
*My views and opinions do not represent the views and opinions of the company/organisations I work or am attached with.